Deathstroke (Vol 2) 1
Synopsis for "Back To Basics" Slade Wilson, better known as Deathstroke The Terminator, is the "scariest badass on the planet" a metahuman assassin whose speed, strength, and higher brain functions have all been enhanced. In addition, he is a master strategist. In Moscow, Russia, all of these abilities come into play as he faces ten armed soldiers. Within moments, he has slain them all. Let it not be said that Deathstroke doesn't earn his pay. Later, Slade sits through a pitch by his liaison Christoph, who believes that the recent job offer the got will be well received. He isn't sold on it, from Christoph's description, and when he discovers that he'll be working as part of a four-man team made up of mostly green up-and-comers, he is incredulous. Christoph goads him by suggesting that Slade can't handle the mission. In response, Slade flicks a paperclip through the air and slices a nearby fly in half, warning that the mission had better be worthwhile, for Christoph's sake. Deathstroke's team is made up of April, a weapons expert; Quinn, the communications expert; and Hughes, the transport man. When Deathstroke arrives, the three young agents are intimidated by his size and demeanour, and he is far less impressed with them. Getting down to business, Christophe names their target: a man named Jeffrey Bode, a weapons dealer who is expected to be delivering nuclear secrets to Iran. For politican and bureaucratic reasons, he can't be taken out on the ground, so it is the team's mission to take him out mid-air on his private plane, destroying his stockpile in the process. The team uses its own plane to catch up to Bode's, and ignoring April's upgrades to his suit and weapons, Deathstroke leaps from the open bay doors and lands, gripping onto the side of Bode's fuselage with his sword. Using his might alone, he rips the door off the side of the plane at 500 miles per hour. Once inside, though, he discovers that Bode has not got a stockpile of weapons on board, but rather biological weapons; soldiers modified with Clayface DNA. Having difficulty killing them himself, he simply tosses them out the open door. Cornered, Jeffrey Bode reveals that the entire mission was engineered to get Deathstroke onto that plane in order to give him certain items within a suitcase. Looking into the case, Deathstroke demands to know if he is to take the contents as a threat. Bode responds that it is merely a message. Having got what he came for, Deathstroke arms an explosive, and then leaps from the plane moments before it is detonated. A well-placed grapple pulls him back to his team. Afterwards, Christoph and the three young agents celebrate their success. Christoph suggests that they could be offered more work in the future before asking Slade what he thinks of the up-and-coming team. He responds that there is no team, only competition and he doesn't work with the competition. Turning, he unloads several rounds into the three young agents, killing them all, and leaving their bodies splayed about the floor. Angrily, Slade chastises Christoph for gathering a team of teenagers to work with him. Christoph desperately explains that the team was at the request of the client, and that they didn't believe that a man as old as Slade Wilson can cut it in the field. Deathstroke responds that they have a lot of work to do in rebuilding his reputation, and leaves Christoph to clean up the bodies. Appearing in "Back To Basics" Featured Characters *Deathstroke Supporting Characters *'Christoph' *'The Alpha Dawgs' (Only Appearance and Dies) **'Quinn' (Only Appearance and Dies) **'Hughes' (Only Appearance and Dies) **'April' (Only Appearance and Dies) Villains *'Jeffrey Bode' *'Elsey Kopnek' Other Characters *Pandora (Cameo) Locations *'Russia' **'Moscow' Items *'Suitcase' Vehicles *None Known Notes *Deathstroke codenamed for this mission is "Lovetap". *Early in this Issue, a woman wearing a purple cloak is seen watching Slade Wilson facing off against Elsey Kopnek's gang. This character first appeared in FlashPoint #5 and makes similar cameos in all #1s of The New 52. The identity of this character is currently unknown. Trivia *Coming Soon Links *http://www.dccomics.com/comics/deathstroke-2011/deathstroke-1 *http://dc.wikia.com/wiki/Deathstroke_Vol_2_1 *http://www.comicvine.com/deathstroke-back-to-basics/37-292582/ Deathstroke (Vol 2) 01